Desmoplastic melanoma of the lip

✍ Scribed by Amy C. Hessel; Robert M. Byers

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 2002
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 66 KB
• Volume: 24
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 1043-3074
• DOI: 10.1002/hed.10077

✦ Synopsis

Background:

This retrospective study looks at the prognosis of desmoplastic melanoma of the lip, correlating it with the clinical course, treatment, and patterns of failure.

Method:

Twenty-two patients with desmoplastic melanoma of the lip were seen at the university of texas m. d. anderson cancer center from 1965 to 1998.

Results:

Three disease groups: (i) untreated tumor (3 patients), (ii) excisional scar (10 patients), and (iii) locoregional recurrence (9 patients). group i had two cures and one failure. in group ii six had no recurrences, and there were four failures. in group iii, all patients failed. ten patients (45%) had no evidence of disease, of which three (30%) had an initial misdiagnosis. twelve patients (55%) died of disease or were living with disease, of which eight (67%) had an initial misdiagnosis.

Conclusions:

Desmoplastic melanoma of the lip is often misdiagnosed and, therefore, inappropriately treated with multiple recurrences and poor prognosis. accurate diagnosis and combined treatment may improve local control and survival.